Bottle cleaning device



Feb. 27, 1934. A. F. HOFFMAN BOTTLE CLEANING DEVICE Filed July l5, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENT i Ef Fell 27, 1934 A. F. HOFFMAN BOTTLE CLEANING DEVICE Filed July l5, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS Feb. 27, 1934. A F, HOFFMAN 1,949,206

BOTTLE CLEANING DEVICE Filed July l5, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR ATTORN EY Patented Feta. 2.7, 1934 NT S BOTTLE CLEANHNG DEVICE Application July 15, 1930. Serial No. 468,038

4 Claims.

This invention relates to bottle cleaning devices and has particular reference to a device for removing the metal foil from the necks of used beverage bottles.

The caps or Stoppers of beverage bottles are usually sealed by a layer of metal foil which envelopes the cap and extends down over the neck of the bottle to which it is glued securely. When the bottle is opened by removing the cap or other stopper, the metal foil extending immediately over the cap is broken and removed with the cap, but the greater proportion of the metal foil still adheres securely to the neck of the bottle.

The great majority or these empty beverage bottles are recovered and are used over again and again, the bottles being in no way deteriorated by frequent refillings. These recovered bottles are soaked and washed in and with cleaning materials to thoroughly cleanse them and remove the labels, out the metal foil still adheres tightly to the bottle necks, because, unlike the paper labels, it is waterproof, and the soaking solution, such as caustic soda, also has a hardening effect on the foil, so that the soaking and cleaning solutions cannot penetrate it to soften and loosen the glue which causes it to adhere to the glass.

When such bottles are cleaned manually the foil may be laboriously scraped o by means of a knife, but in automatic bottle washing machines now generally used in large bottling plants, the foil still adheres to the necks of the bottles after they leave the machines, and its manual removal must be resorted to, which is expensive and laborious at best and therefore wholly unsatisfactory.

t is the principal object of this invention to provide an accessory for bottle washing machines which overcomes the diiculties encountered 4o heretofore in eiectively removing the metal foil from used bottles by scraping ofi or so mutilating the foil as to provide a great number of openings in the water-prooi foil for permitting the soaking solutions to seep under the edges thereof and loosen the glue which causes it to adhere to the glass.

Another object of this invention is to provide a device of the type described, whereby each bottle is conveyed successively through a gang of scrapers, each of which is applied to one portion of the foil while the successive Scrapers o1 the gang are each applied to other portions of the foil, so that the entire layer oi foil is scraped onc or mutilated in a series of successive steps.

` A :further object of this invention is to provide a device of the type described which is adapted to be mounted upon a commercial bottle soaking and washing machine in such a way that it may be thrown into and out of operation at will, depending cn Whether or not the bottles passing through the machine at any one time are foiled or unioiled.

These and other objects of this invention are obtained in a preferred embodiment thereof, including a conveyor, which preferably constitutes the bottle conveyor of a bottle soaking and washing machine, in which the used bottles are held in parallel relation with their necks projecting outwardly from the conveyor, which holds them against relative longitudinal or lateral movement but does not prevent their rotation while conveying them bodily through the soaking and washing machine. Such a machine may be of the general type disclosed in Patents Nos. 1,381,- 325 and 1,429,6G, issued to George J. Meyer, and the device oi this invention may be used with such machines, or a machine such as a test tank through which bottles pass after having been filled and capped, and may constitute an accessory thereto, but it is not limited to such use but may be used individually without connection with any machine, or with a machine of an entirely different type.

' For a detailed description of the invention, reference may be had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a side elevation of the bottle oleaning device of this invention, shown in operative position with respect to a series of bottles carried in engagement therewith by a conveyor;

Fig. 2 is a iront elevation of the same;

Fig. 3 is a plan section of the same as seen along the line 3--3 of Fig. 1; and

Figs. 4 and 5 illustrate the mechanism for throwing the device in and out of operative position, Fig. e showing the former and Fig. 5 the latter position.

In Fig. 2 of these drawings, numeral 10 designates the frame or housing of the bottle soaking and washing machine of the general type disclosed in the aforementioned patents. Preierabiy moving in a vertical direction through this machine is a chain conveyor l1, shown particularly in Fig. 1, carrying a series of spaced sockets 12 having tapering ends adapted to receive the necks of the bottles B in the manner illustrated. A vertical plate 13 spaced from the conveyor and extending parallel to its path, holds the bottles B in the sockets 12 by engaging their bottoms as they are moved upwardly by the conveyor in the manner shown particularly in Figs. 1 and 3. The bottles B are carried by the conveyor in equally spaced relation and in a plurality of rows, each row moving vertically with the conveyor.

Journalled at one end in a wall of the machine 10 is a shaft 14, this shaft extending across the machine adjacent the conveyor and being journalled at its other end in a bar secured by a bolt 16 at its free end to the other wall of the machine 10. Secured to the end of the shaft 14 is a disc 17 having notches 18 and 19 in its periphery, these notches being spaced 90 apart, as is shown particularly in Figs. 4 and 5. Pivoted to bar 15 is a pawl 20 having a handle 20', this pawl being arranged to be inserted either into notch 18 or notch 19. Secured to the outer surface of disc 17 is a lever 21 having a handle 22 whereby the disc 17, attached shaft 14 and its appurtenant parts, may be rotated to either one of the positions shown in Figs. 4 and 5, in each of which it is held by pawl in the manner described.

Shaft 14 has a squared central portion 23 to which is secured by tap screws 24 a pair of side members 25 and a plurality of cross members 26, 27, and 28, all of these elements cooperating to form a rigid frame which is pivoted on shaft 14, and which can be moved as a unit by rotating lever 21 in the manner described. Although four cross bars are shown, including the squared portion of the shaft 23, more or less of these may be used, and in some constructions it may be found suiiicient to use only the simple shaft 23 and eliminate the frame structure, all depending upon the use to which the bottle cleaner device of this invention is to be put.

The frame, in its operative position, does not lie exactly parallel to the path of movement of the conveyor at 11, but is tilted at a small angle in relation thereto as shown in Fig. 1, the purpose of this being explained later.

Secured to the squared portion 23 of shaft 14 by tap screws 29 is a plurality of brackets 30, each of said brackets being adapted to extend between the necks of adjacent rows of bottles as they move vertically, except for the outside brackets 30, which extend adjacent the necks of the bottles of the outside rows as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The free ends of brackets 30 are slotted, and in each of the slots is clamped the ends of a plurality of scraper claws, three pairs of such scraper claws being arranged to cooperate as a group, the rst pair being designated 32, the second pair 33, and third pair 34. The tips of the scraper claws 32, 33 and 34 overlap slightly, and are serrated to provide teeth, so that claw-like resilient fingers are formed, these fingers being preferably made of spring steel of suitable width and length. Thus, three pairs of such scraper claws lie in the path of each row of bottles as they are moved upwardly by the conveyor, the relative position of these claws with respect to the necks of the bottles being shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3.

Secured to each of the brackets 30, except the two outside ones, is a clip 35 having an extension 36, which is slotted and carries a strip of spring steel 37, the upwardly turned ends of which engage the outer surfaces of the opposite claws 34 and urge them apart, as shown particularly in Fig. 2. The outermost brackets 30 are not tted with the spring 37, but with a pair of auxiliary leaf springs 38 which engage the outer surface of the outermost claw 37 and urge its tip in overlapping relation to the corresponding tip of the other claw 37 of the pair. Each of the cross bars 26, 27, 28 carries a plurality of like sets of claws, which are identical to those just described, so that further explanation is not necessary.

When not in operation, the foil removing device of this invention lies in the position shown in phantom in Fig. 1, that is, turned away from the conveyor 11, the pawl 20 lying in notch 18 of disc 17 and holding the scraper frame substantially horizontal.

In operation, before the conveyor carrying the bottles B is started, and providing the bottles B bear the metal foil F which it is sought to remove, the operator grasps handle 22 of lever 21 to hold the device steady, and then, with the other hand, draws pawl 20 from notch 18 and rotates lever 21 through an angle of so that pawl 20 drops into notch 19 and the apparatus lies in the vertical position shown in Figs. 1 and 4. In this position, the scrapers extend across the path of movement of the necks of the bottles, that is, each bottle of each row passes between the pairs of scraper claws 32, 33 and 34 of each group in succession.

The slight angular relation of the scraper frame with respect to the bottles is designed to effect the successive scraping of different parts of the foil as the bottles travel through the successive sets of scraper claws of each vertical gang. As shown in Fig. 1, the lower set of scraper claws 34 engages that portion of the foil F which lies lowest on the neck of the bottle B, the second set of scraper claws engages another point further up the neck of the bottle, and so on, until the last set of scraper claws engages the foil at the lip of the bottle. This has been found very effective, because in this way the apparent diiculty in arranging a scraper of a width suiiicient to engage the entire expanse of foil on the neck of the bottle while providing it with the necessary fiexibility so that it will conform to the configuration of the neck of the bottle and at the same time scrape every portion of the foil, is eliminated.

As the bottles B are carried upwardly by the conveyor, the first pair of claws 32 of the first set of Scrapers engage the foil and because of the claw-like teeth of the tips of the Scrapers, the foil is either scraped off entirely at this point, or is so mutilated as to be readily soaked off, because of the resiliency of the scraper claws, which follow the circumference of the neck of the bottle and engage every portion thereof. What foil is left at this point by the rst pair of scraper claws, if any, is engaged by the second pair of scraper claws 33 of the set, and what is left by the second pair of scraper claws is disposed of by the third pair 34. Accordingly, when the bottle B emerges from the last set of the gang, either all of the metal foil has been removed, or else, whatever remains is so mutilated that the soaking action which follows the scraping operation will loosen the remainder of the foil by attacking the glue or paste, which has been exposed by the scratching action, and the foil will fall oil?, the soaking solution which is used being caustic soda, which cuts the glue and grease to render the bottles more readily washable.

It will be seen that the invention provides an efcient and effective device for removing the metal foil from packages and used beverage bottles especially, and serves as a useful accessory to bottle soaking and washing machines of the commercial type, in that it removes or aids in removing the metal foil from the necks of the bottles, which, being water-proof, is not penetrated by the caustic soda and consequently not loosened or otherwise affected thereby. While this invention has been illustrated and described as being particularly adapted for taking metal foil from the necks of used beverage bottles, it is to be understood that it is not limited thereto, but is susceptible of many changes in form and detail Within its scope, and, although gang scrapers have been shown, they may be used singly with a similar effect, and they may be moved relative with respect to stationary articles instead of vice versa.

I claim:

1. In a device for removing metal foil from an article, the combination of a pair of resiliently mounted scraper claws having their tips normally in overlapping relation, and means for moving an article between the tips of said claws, whereby the foil thereon is scraped.

2. In a device for removing metal foil from the necks of bottles, the combination of a conveyor for the bottles, a frame mounted adjacent said conveyor, and a plurality of stationary scraper claws on said frame for engaging the necks of the bottles to remove the foil therefrom.

3. In a device for removing metal foil from the necks of bottles, the combination of a conveyor for the bottles, a frame mounted adjacent said conveyor, and a plurality of stationary scraper claws mounted in series on said frame, successive claws being oiset relatively to the preceding claws for engaging diierent portions of the foil.

4. In a device for removing metal foil from the necks of bottles, the combination of a conveyor for the bottles, a frame mounted adjacent said conveyor, a plurality of pairs of stationary scraper claws of different length mounted on said frame for successively engaging a portion of the foil on the necks of said bottles, and a plurality of other pairs of scraper claws mounted on said frame for engaging another portion of the foil.

ALBERT F. HOFFMAN. 

